My dear friend
by Aki no hikari
Summary: For Asmita of Virgo, Athena-Sasha was a foolish goddess, for Athena-Sasha, Asmita of Virgo was her best friend. LC AsmxAth Epilogue Up!
1. Chapter 1: Pain

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes under ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

**Chapter 1: Pain**

Sisyphus of Sagittarius smiled sweetly to the little girl whose hand he held. Her eyes were swollen and red from so much crying, and yet she was looking around her with slight recognition.

"Do you know this place, your highness?" asked the towering gold saint as they little by little walked deeper into the sanctuary. The girl looked at him with large green eyes, small specks of grey shining in them.

"I don't, but I feel as if I had been here before and if I look at a fallen column I can remember clearly its original location" she answered hoarsely. Sisyphus nodded, rather astonished by her memories.

Step by step they went up the stairs that connected the Twelve Temples, some of which were empty, while some of them had men of shining golden cloths similar to Sisyphus'. These men kneeled on the ground and bowed their head as they saw her pass. Little Sasha looked at this demonstration of respect with some curiosity. Little Athena, on the other hand, acknowledged this as the way she was supposed to be treated. Sasha was very confused, she had conflicting feelings regarding this place, sadness for having left her first home and happiness for having returned to what she knew was her real home.

Conflicting feelings had also engulfed her the first time she saw Sisyphus.

It all started a couple weeks before…

_Little Sasha went running into the orphanage looking for a toy of hers, stopping on her tracks as she saw the woman in charge quietly conversing with a young man of brown hair and deep eyes. The man turned and smiled as he saw her, at that moment Sasha knew he was coming for her and Athena knew who he was._

"_You're Sagittarius" said Athena-Sasha out loud, interrupting the adults. Sisyphus smiled and kneeled in front of her, bowing his head._

"_Yes, your highness. I've come to take you home" he answered with a slight smile._

" _Home? Ah… I remember now, the sanctuary" she muttered as she walked towards him._

Just as it had taken no effort associating Sisyphus with a blurry mental image of Sagittarius, it took no effort to associate what she saw now with impressions she remembered vaguely, memories of war, suffering and happiness, and of course, every second she wished that Tenma and Aaron were with her, maybe then… maybe then she wouldn't have felt so alone…

Remembering Tenma and Aaron had made her cry again and Sisyphus had tried to console her without success. However, as they approached the main temple she forced herself to stop crying, after all, she had to show strength in front of the leader of the saints… HER saints. Sisyphus had explained several things while they were traveling and by joining them with her own memories that were awakening more and more each day, she convinced herself that it was her duty to be strong for everyone, she had to hide her pain, for a weak person could not protect the Earth of what was to come.

She entered the Great Hall and noticed that inside was a saint she had not met yet. He was kneeling in front of a great throne, upon which a man wearing a helmet and a mask sat down. This man seemed to emanate authority and this made little Sasha quite uncomfortable, but then she remembered that she was a goddess and that no human was above her, therefore, she raised her chin and walked to the throne, Sisyphus had stayed outside, as he had an audience with the Pope later.

"Princess" saluted the man, rising and walking towards her.

"_Calm down Sasha, inhale, exhale and raise your head, so that he may see your eyes"_ she thought to herself and jumped a bit, surprised as the man kneeled in front of her.

"Your highness, welcome to your Sanctuary. My name is Sage and I am the Pope of this Sanctuary, please receive my salute and my oath of eternal fidelity" said the old man with an extremely formal voice, she smiled and tears formed on her eyes as she remembered that her destiny was taking her far away from the people she loved, she closed her eyes and let some tears fall on her face.

"Thank you… it is good to be back home" she answered and then tried to dry her tears, which kept coming out of her eyes. She was happy, but at the same time felt a lot of pain, the full weight of her new situation had finally fallen on her young shoulders…

"Irene… escort the princess to her rooms and make sure she receives anything she needs" ordered the pope, as a tall woman walked to the little girl and placed a blanket over the fragile figure of the goddess. Gently she conducted the girl behind the throne, as they passed beside the Golden figure Athena observed him between her tears, his hair was long and as golden as his cloth and his features were fine… almost aristocratic. The man noticed her scrutiny and bowed even more, hiding behind a curtain of gold. Afterwards, Athena and Irene abandoned the hall behind the curtains, through a hallway that would take them to her rooms.

"But… is this little one truly Athena?" spoke the golden saint at last.

"Yes, and she cries because she has been separated from the people dear to her. So young and she already had to take such a painful decision" answered the Pope, noticing the bewilderment of the saint. Said saint remained in silence, unsure of what to make of the situation.

"Usually, the gods are above humans… but Athena chooses to reincarnate as a human so that she may comprehend their pain better. That is what makes her deserving of reign over the Earth" said the Pope as he watched the small princess vanish on the hallway.

"_I disagree, your Excellency, I don't understand how a goddess such as this can guide the Earth towards the truth"_ thought the saint, but he remained silent for a moment longer.

"Excellency, I, Asmita of Virgo, ask for your permission to retire…" he added after a while. The Pope nodded.

"You may go and do not forget the mission I entrusted to you…" answered the Pope. Asmita smiled lightly.

"Of course your Excellency, until later" after saying his goodbyes he walked calmly out of the room, outside he met Sisyphus and both nodded to each other, just to acknowledge each other's presence.

Thus, after returning to the temple of Virgo, Asmita sank into deep meditation as the Pope commanded him, searching for clues so that they may prepare for the coming Holy War and plunging in the depths of the Cosmos, Asmita focused in his work, momentarily forgetting the world around him…

Late at night, Sasha dressed in her old orphanage clothes, much more comfortable than the dresses her ladies-in-waiting had given her, and then slipped silently among the shadows, she remembered clearly that she had been told not to go beyond the main temple… but Sasha had ignored that recommendation/order, firstly because she was used to go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted, absolute freedom had been an advantage of being poor and orphan, as long as she returned before curfew she could do as she pleased… secondly, she was Athena and nobody ordered he around, she laughed softly at that stray thought, it was funny how she had gone from Sasha the orphan to Athena the goddess from one day to the next. Immediately she quieted down, she wanted to know her sanctuary but she had to be careful if she didn't want to be discovered.

An hour later Sasha sighed in relieve as she got out the temple of Libra, the saint guarding said temple was wide awake and it had taken a lot of effort getting in and out without being seen… though it probably had to do with the staff she carried… she had been told that this was Nike and that it gave victory to its wielder, and that she, Athena, was its rightful owner. So, as she needed all the luck she could get if she wanted to escape the 12 temples, she opted to take Nike with her and so far it had yielded good results…

She approached Virgo cautiously, noticing the presence of the saint inside; however, the presence was so lethargic that Athena assumed the saint was fast asleep, so she entered the temple with the certainty that she would be able to reach Leo. That's when she noticed he was sitting with his legs crossed…

"_What an odd position to sleep"_ she thought as she hid behind a column and observed him… then, remembering that her friend Tenma could sleep even on the branches of trees, Athena recovered her confidence and walked firmly to the exit…

"What brings you to the temple of Virgo Athena?" Sasha jumped when she heard the voice, her heart pounding on her chest from the fright, and turned sharply to watch him, then she noticed two things, first: it was the same saint she had seem in the morning in the pope's great hall and second: he had his eyes closed.

"Is it secure for you to be so far away? The Pope will get worried" he added. Athena stared at him for several seconds and finally her curiosity won.

"How could you see me if you close your eyes?" she asked curiously.

"I have not closed them your highness, they are always like this" he answered calmly and added "thanks to that I can look more deeply than others, watching all the suffering in this world"

Athena smiled sadly and walked towards him; she left Nike on the floor and squatted in front of him.

"Then that means… that you suffer terribly"

"_Wha…?"_ thought Asmita, confused for the second time in this day.

"And you are a goddess! Yet you have chosen to be able to feel pain!" he exclaimed. Athena smiled once more, understanding the saint of Virgo's quandary. He was demanding her… because he suffered too and couldn't understand how someone, moreover a god, would take the suffering voluntarily. Athena sat down, imitating his pose and reached towards him, intertwining their fingers together.

"It doesn't bother me to feel the pain" she answered honestly. "Because it means that I have no forgotten my promise" she smiled and, accidentally, ignited her warm cosmos, enveloping the saint with it. "What is more, if I could, I would like to feel all the pain possible"

"I do not understand" Asmita was terribly confused. Sasha giggled a bit in response

"It doesn't matter, I don't understand it either, besides I believe we don't need to understand this feeling, but we must do what the heart tells us to do" she explained or at least she tried, but the saint seemed to be even more confused.

She looked at their intertwined hands, his bigger than hers, and yet so similar both, roughed up by hard work and small scars, so similar to the scars in their souls…

"By the way, saint of Virgo, what is your name?" she asked with a warm smile, she really liked this saint and hoped they could be friends.

"ah, well, I am Asmita of Virgo, Princess Athena" he answered while trying to decipher the strange behavior of the girl in front of him, he could feel her cosmos surrounding him and it was incredibly comforting, he could also feel her small, fragile hands holding his own and it was weird, Asmita could not remember the last time someone had taken his hands like this. He set aside this thoughts at once and got up, letting go of Athena's hands and breaking the bubble that had isolated them from the exterior during their short exchange.

"Princess, I do believe you should return to the main temple" he said firmly while helping her get up and giving her the victory staff. She took it and made a pout.

"But…"

"No buts your highness, return and do not get distracted on the way up, I promise I will tell no one of your… escapade, but only if you return to your chambers" she sighed and Asmita smiled, the childish side of her was easier to understand, not to mention rather amusing.

"Fine, I'll return" she accepted "tell me then, May I come to visit you some other day?" she asked excited. Asmita tilted his head, thinking about it.

"If the pope gives his permission, I have no problem with it"

"Really? Thank you so much!" she hugged him tightly and Asmita stiffened, dumbfounded with the sudden effusivity of the goddess. "See you soon!" she exclaimed happily and got out of the temple with a spring on her step.

Asmita sighed once more and returned to the lotus position. Took a deep breath and abstracted from the world to continue his meditation.


	2. Chapter 2: Cosmos

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes under ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

**Chapter 2: Cosmos**

Athena had been living in the Sanctuary for more than a month and had gotten to know each of her golden saints a bit better. From the melancholic Albafica to the always excited Aldebaran, yet it had been a while since she had last seen Asmita, and it had been on formal occasion that made him seem as the serious and unfeeling golden saint everyone believed he was. Athena stopped writing for a few seconds and looked from the window of the library where she was studying, from there, she could see the twelve temples and moreover she had a good view of the Virgo temple. She let her quill down, putting her elbows on the table and resting her face on her hands, thoughtful.

It had been more than a month since she promised to go and see him but she hadn't done it yet, not that she didn't want to, but she had tons of stuff to do and she had to ask permission to the pope, she had no idea of how to convince him… and speaking of Rome, she felt the presence that she had come to associate with her pope approaching but did not acknowledge it yet.

"Good afternoon, princess" greeted Sage as he walked towards her. "Have you finished your duties?" he asked kindly. He was always kind to her; he was also very strict and did not yield easily, not even to her, convinced as he was that he knew what was best… Athena took a deep breath and smiling lightly turned to greet him.

"Good afternoon Sage, I have not finished yet, I'm merely resting my eyes" she answered as she stretched her arms, just noticing how tired she was from spending the day crunched over the many sheets of parchment, writing and studying. Sage took a seat in front of her, he was not wearing the helmet and mask, and thus Sasha was able to notice the worry lines in his face, just now he looked so old.

"You know princess, until now you have spend your time training your body for battle and acquiring the knowledge of a ruler and strategist and I have noticed that we have not discussed how you will practice the use of cosmos" said Sage in his most serious tone, all the time berating himself for having forgotten that, despite being a goddess, she needed training in the use of cosmos as everybody else.

"Cosmos?" she said tentatively, while mentally she couldn't help a small whoop of joy, she had just been handed a golden opportunity on a silver plate and she wasn't about to let it go.

"Yes, the cosmos, the remaining energy of the Big Bang that is within each and every living being. This is the energy the Saints and the Gods use in battle" he explained. Sasha already knew this, after all you could only spend so much time in the sanctuary without coming across cosmos. But she pretended otherwise, for the sake of the half formed plan on her head.

"And I must learn to dominate this technique, musn't I?" Sage nodded

"Not only to dominate it, but you must learn to take it beyond your human essence… well, first I must find a master to explain you all of this." Sasha smiled slightly, jumping on the opportunity he had given her.

"What about Asmita of Virgo?" she asked softly, making her best I-didn't-break-it face. Sage stared at her curiously.

"Asmita of Virgo?" he asked, puzzled that Athena had made such a suggestion.

"I mean, I think I heard that he was the Golden Saint with the best control and knowledge of cosmos… so I believe he should be my master in this area" she insisted, schooling her face so that she didn't betray her excitement and instead looked merely practical.

Sage crossed his arms and looked through the window thoughtful.

"_While Athena is right and Asmita is the best in the area, the problem…_" he looked at the princess from the corner of his eye _"is that Asmita is not the most loyal saint in the order, while he obeys all orders and would never dare to attack the goddess, the truth is he has ideas that go against everything we predicate, he has not as much faith in the goddess as the other saints and besides…" _he looked at the young goddess sitting in front of him. She was staring expectantly at him; her eyes had changed to gray almost completely, barely a greenish hue was left from their former emerald color. She looked worriedly at him.

"What is it? Perhaps Asmita is not the most adequate to be my master?" she asked with a slight frown on her face. Sage reached a decision and shook his head.

"He is not as adequate as I would like, but it seems he is the only one who could teach something to you" he sighed _"Perhaps it is for the best, it would either make you or break you… both of you"_ "Very well, I will speak to him today and if everything goes swiftly, tomorrow afternoon you shall go to Virgo to take your new lesson."

"Well then, I will continue what I was doing, unless there's anything else you need to talk to me about" she answered with a sweet smile, reserved to her dear pope who had quickly become the father she never had. Sage smiled as well and shook his head.

"I will see you later, princess" After he left Sasha couldn't help but congratulate herself on a well done job and returning to her work while humming contentedly.

* * *

><p>"… as such, I commend you the mission of guiding princess Athena's steps in the use of cosmos." Finished the pope while, from his throne, observing the kneeling saint of Virgo, who remained completely imperturbable, as was usual of him. The rest of the present golden saints, seven besides Asmita, observed the scene from both sides of the red carpet that ran through the great hall, each with a different expression on his face.<p>

"I am honored that I have been chosen for this mission and shall do my best to rise to the occasion" answered the saint of Virgo, bowing obediently.

"Good, tomorrow afternoon Athena will go down to Virgo, I trust that she will be as protected as if she were in the main temple" added the pope, this time looking at the congregated saints. All gave their agreement, some more reluctant than others.

A few minutes later as the saints abandoned the great hall…

"Asmita of Virgo…" Asmita stopped at the entrance of the main temple and turned slightly to the voice, there was no point in turning fully as he could not see the person that spoke. All the saints stopped their conversations to witness the exchange between those two.

"Aldebaran of Taurus…" answered Asmita as he recognized the voice and raised slightly an eyebrow, predictably, it was Aldebaran of Taurus who could not hide his distrust, perhaps even a bit of his despise towards the saint of Virgo.

"Asmita, you better take care of the princess with your life, otherwise…" Taurus left the threat hanging in the air, Asmita only nodded slightly and turned to keep walking, but stopped as Aldebaran began talking again.

"Asmita, I'm serious" added the saint of the bull as he thought that Asmita was taking him lightly. Asmita turned until he was face to face with Aldebaran.

"I realize that Aldebaran, and you would do well in remembering that there is a reason the sacred cloth of Virgo has chosen me, after all I have made a vow as well and, despite my personal opinions, I will fulfill that vow at any price, even with my life…" he tilted his head to the side, wondering if he should continue, and decided to add "and you would also do well in remembering that not even us, the golden saints, can protect the child Athena from herself…" he stopped before he talked too much and turned on his heels, walking out of the main temple with an elegant step.

"What is that supposed to mean!" exclaimed Taurus narrowing his eyes dangerously. Virgo stopped for a second, but then continued walking as if he had not heard.

Aldebaran turned and walked back towards the inside of the Temple.

"Aldebaran…"

"Not now, Dohko, I wish to speak with his Excellency" Dohko sighed as Aldebaran stalked pass him.

"Here we go again" he muttered heavily. Manigoldo of Cancer barked a laugh.

"Well, that surely was entertaining" he said to the air and with a wave went towards his own temple, followed by the rest…

The next day, Athena walked calmly out of the main temple, this time she was not taking Nike in her hands, and she was in fact dressed with rough apprentice clothes. Sasha giggled as she remembered Sage's face when he saw her and his sour expression when she explained she was more comfortable dressed like this, of course Sage did not know that since little she fought nail and tooth with the kids in the poor side of the city, sometimes teaming with Tenma, sometimes by herself, but to the day of her departure she had remained unbeaten… she hopped happily down the stairs all the way to Sagittarius, where she stopped a couple minutes to greet Sisyphus and his apprentice Yato, afterwards she kept going without stopping all the way to Virgo.

"Good afternoon princess" greeted Asmita with a slight bow. Sasha smiled in amusement.

"Good afternoon Asmita, now I have permission to be here" she answered with a giggle escaping her lips. Asmita nodded.

"Yes, I imagine such a plan could only be the work of the goddess of strategy and ingenuity. However, you are not here to laze around but to train, if you would follow me…" Sasha followed him quietly until they reached a side passage of the temple, where two enormous doors guarded their destination. Asmita opened them and Sasha's mouth fell to the floor, the beautiful garden left her breathless, and she had thought that Albafica's roses were beautiful, her thoughts were interrupted by Asmita as he walked away of her and towards two trees similar to one another, the only trees in the whole garden. Sasha walked quickly to catch up, trying her best not to step too much on the beautiful flowers.

When she reached Asmita, she found him seated in the lotus position and imitated him as her eyes went everywhere.

"What is this place? I would have never imagined such a garden next to Virgo"

"This is the garden of the twin Salas" answered Asmita as he relaxed little by little and allowed the princess to notice the murmur of his cosmos.

"It is very beautiful" she answered, more subdued than before.

"Athena, close your eyes" she obeyed, though the curiosity was eating her. "Now relax and throw all your thoughts and emotions away"

"WHAT?" she snapped and stared at him as if he had just asked her to cross the Atlantic swimming. Why ever would she want to throw her emotions and thoughts away? Asmita frowned and shook his head, this was going to be harder than he was expecting, even if the child had already ignited her cosmos once that he knew of. Then he turned towards the garden.

"Athena, what do you see, when you look at the garden?" he asked weirding her out; she looked at him puzzled, but then shrugged and looked at the garden for several seconds.

"I see… ah… a lot of flowers and plants, the twin Salas, the light of the sun shining over everything… um…" she turned and noticed Asmita shaking his head with a slight smile.

"No Athena, you are not _seeing_ really, this is not the truth" said Asmita, calm despite perceiving her agitation at his answer. "Until now you have perceived what you believe is the truth with your five senses, taste, sight, hearing, touch and smell and analyzed what you perceived using the sixth sense of thought. However, we who possess the mastery of cosmos do not perceive reality through these senses but through the seventh sense, a sense that only the strongest saints and the gods have reached. Do you understand what I am saying Princess Athena?"

"Yes, but as I understood it, shouldn't I learn about cosmos first and after that learn to use the seventh sense?" she asked as she watched him with a new fascination, now she understood why he was called the man closest to a god, even among the golden saints who were considered demi-gods Asmita of Virgo was unreachable, or at least that was what she had gotten out of Sisyphus quite a while ago.

"It is all about perspective, saints learn first to use our bodies as weapons, then we are taught the use of cosmos, and finally, those of us who will become golden saints are taught to overcome our human limits and reach a new level, the level of the seventh sense. However, after meditating on it I have reached the conclusion that you should learn the use of cosmos and the seventh sense at the same time" then he smiled gently. "Besides, you have used your cosmos before" Sasha had her eyes very open and was leaning towards him, hanging from every word that came out of his mouth.

"Did I?" she asked breathlessly. Asmita nodded

"Yes, one day that you decided to _explore_ instead of going to bed" Sasha blushed brightly and straightened her back once more.

"Let us start again, yes? Close your eyes and try to empty your mind of all thought and feeling" Athena closed her eyes once more but had trouble complying with the rest of it, just as Asmita thought it would happen.

"Take a deep breath and exhale, imagine that you are in an infinite green meadow, above your head there is the night sky, covered in stars, these stars are calling you and you go towards them, but the more you go up the more stars appear, each more beautiful that the one before, the stars call for you and you wish to go up, reach them, until you feel around you the empty universe, the perfection of the nothingness…" his voice went quiet as he noticed that the child Athena became completely soothed and entered a trance, he smiled to himself as he felt the cosmos of the child igniting by itself, beating in tandem with her heart, immense, warm and comforting, the cosmos of the goddess Athena.

All around the sanctuary, the saints and apprentices stopped what they were doing, took a deep breath and sighed contentedly, those with more sensitivity, such as the golden saints and some of the silver ones, looked towards the Virgo temple, recognizing their goddess and achieving an inner peace they have not felt for some time.

Meanwhile, Asmita began his meditation once more, going to the astral plane and looking for the conscience of Athena, finally he found her, floating aimlessly and too focused in what she was feeling to _see_ actually, Asmita got closer and tried to guide Athena to another level of concentration, but as soon as both consciences touched Athena jumped and returned violently to her own body.

When Asmita descended once more, in a more slow and controlled way, he found the child breathing with difficulty and almost hysteric…

"What… what was what…" she asked trying to get her breath back. Asmita reflected about what had just transpired.

"You… were not expecting me, did you?" Sasha took a deep breath, calming down.

"No I wasn't. I felt that something pushed me into the unknown" she said with a frown. Asmita nodded.

"Yes, that was I. I wished to guide you to another level of the plane we were at. However, it was barely a touch and you reacted quite violently… you should not worry princess, there is no danger that can reach you here.

Sasha pouted and turned towards the garden.

"Easier said than done" she muttered a bit angry because of his callousness. Asmita noted her anger.

"Is there anything that worries you, Athena?"

"There is nothing that worries me!" she snapped. How dare he ask her that? Did he thought she was afraid? Because she wasn't! She sniffed, even angrier than before. Asmita sighed and shook his head.

"I think it would be advisable that from now on you try to meditate some before sleeping" Sasha raised an eyebrow at that. "It will not be much, just take a deep breath and try to do the same exercise we just did… well, it has been almost three hours since your arrival, it will be better if you return to the main temple.

Sasha got up and cleaned her pants, making a face because of her sleeping legs.

"Princess, you must learn to trust your saints. I know that you are worried about something, I won't ask, but…

"Trust must be earned, Saint of Virgo" she interrupted him. Asmita stopped talking and there was silence for several seconds.

"As you say, your highness. I apologize for my insolence, have a good night." Answered Asmita while bowing slightly, Athena nodded and abandoned the garden and the house of Virgo…

N/A: I'm not sure if "rise to the occasion" is the phrase I'm looking for, does it make sense in that context?

Also, the next chapter will take longer as I re-read it I didn't like it anymore and I think I will end up re-writing it from the top. Sorry for the inconvenience.


	3. Chapter 3: Trust

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes under ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

**Chapter 3: Trust**

"Good Afternoon princess, have you done what I asked?" said Asmita as he focused his cosmos for that day's lesson. Six months had passed since the first lesson, and they hadn't talked about it since.

"Yes, I have meditated about two hours every night before sleeping…"

"And what have you found?"

"I discovered that Shion hides more secrets than most believe, I have also discovered that Manigoldo's attitude is, in fact, a mask that he uses to not be injured and that Aldebaran fears the things he doesn't understand, the things that are different from what he's used to.

"Anything else?"

Sasha bit her lip and answered in a whisper "I've discovered that the contempt and indifference of the others hurts you more than you want to admit."

Asmita stopped focusing his cosmos and silence reigned in the garden. For a moment Sasha feared she had offended him, but then Asmita smiled sadly.

_"Very perceptive Athena, very perceptive indeed. Well, even I am nothing more than a human, different from the others, but human nevertheless"_ thought Asmita, yet he choose to change the subject and begin with the lesson.

"Well Athena, over the past months you have learned to reach different levels of conscience, to awaken your cosmos and to use it in a number of ways, you have even learned to reach the seventh sense and use it to change from a desperate situation to and advantageous one; last week I have tried to teach you how to defend yourself not from physical attacks but from psychic ones, attacks to your conscience. However, so far you have not been able to fend off any of my attacks, will you be able to achieve it this time?" he asked as he ignited his cosmos. Athena closed her eyes and did the same.

"I don't think I can fend it off Asmita, but I believe I have found a way to counter it before it damages me. If you allow me to try my theory…" then Asmita began his attack, easily overtaking her mental defenses and directing his attack to the center of her very essence, then Athena emitted a large amount of cosmos in waves that reached him and made him fall back.

Soon Asmita's conscience was completely surrounded by Athena, isolated from the rest of the world and now the circle was closing in, pushing against him. Asmita felt Athena's cosmos flooding him, it was as if he was losing his identity and let himself go, he was overwhelmed by the warmth and tenderness she gave and the power… the flow of power that Athena emitted pierced through him, his whole being exposed before the goddess, everything, from his memories to his feelings…

"No… no… STOP!" the Virgo Saint roared and Sasha lost her focus, stopping the assault on Virgo's conscience and when she opened her eyes to the physical plane, what she saw greatly disturbed her. Asmita was crying. Holding himself, he shook visible and cried.

"As… Asmita…" Sasha got a bit closer and he raised his face, for the first time Sasha saw his eyes, blue and clouded, blind to the wonders of the world, and yet so filled with anger that Sasha flinched and moved backwards until her back touched one of the twin trees.

"Out!"

"But Asmita…"

"Get out Athena, before I do something we will both regret! BEGONE!" he didn't need to say it twice, for Sasha lifted her dress and run away with tears on her gray eyes.

Meanwhile, 11 gold saints and one pope had their eyes fixed in Virgo, for they had never felt the cosmos of the Virgo Saint so disturbed and out of control, soon afterwards Athena passed through the temples without being stopped and reached the main temple breathless, trying to calm down and stop crying. Sage got close and looked at her with worry in his eyes.

"Your highness"

"Oh, I'm so stupid, so stupid, how could I be so stupid?" Sasha repeated in tears, while she covered her face with her hands and shook her head.

"Your highness, what happened?" asked Sage as he hugged her and let her cry in his tunic.

"Idiot, idiot, idiot…" Sasha kept saying in tears and ignoring Sage. Who stroked her hair tenderly and let her cry.

Meanwhile, Asmita was also trying to calm down, he was back in a lotus pose but he didn't manage to stop crying, he didn't even know the reason he was crying for, he didn't even understand why he was so offended. Then he felt several cosmos entering Virgo and closed the entrance to the garden with his own cosmos. He didn't want to be accosted... not now, when he was so confusing regarding his inexplicable emotions...

Aldebaran, Docko, Shion and Sisyphus entered quickly into the Virgo temple from different directions, Aldebaran to demand Asmita an explanation, the others to stop him or at least do some damage control. Aldebaran reached the doors of the garden and tried to open them, but they were sealed off, the saint of the sixth house had locked himself in with his cosmos and there would be no way to enter until he allowed it. Aldebaran lifted his fist and loudly banged on the door several times.

"Asmita! Do not hide! Be a man and come out to explain what happened!" demanded the angry golden Taurus and the other three saints flinched.

Asmita flinched as well and the tears filled up his eyes, Athena's voice came to his mind

"_I've discovered that the contempt and indifference of the others hurts you more than you want to admit."_

"Smart girl" he muttered with a melancholic smile. Why did they treat him like this? Could they leave him in peace for at least a moment of his life?

_... A little 5 years old Asmita was sitting in the crowded street of a poor neighbourhood in the British India, the outside world, unknown and dangerous, surrounded and scared him. While he had an outstanding sense of hearing, his blind eyes made him an easy target for whoever wished him harm... Asmita knew this and tried to stand out as little as possible... which was very difficult with his golden hair reflecting the sun and his white skin standing out among the tanned skins of the locals, but Asmita could not know this, for he had been born without the gift of sight and was unaware of the concept of color..._

"_Ey, look! It's the blind!" screamed a child and immediately Asmita was surrounded by a group of children that mocked him, threw stones to him and laughed at his suffering. Asmita started to cry and this encouraged the children to keep going with their 'game_'.

_Soon Asmita managed to escape the place and run away as fast as his short legs and the weakness caused by hunger let him. They were following him, even when he could not see them, he could feel their presence easily, because Asmita had never been a normal child, but what he didn't know was the he was feeling their cosmos, the latent energy of all living beings. _

_The problem with being blind was that, even though he knew the streets very well, when something changed place he had no way of knowing this and that was how he ended up crashing against a vegetable cart and throwing the contents on the ground, contents that were quickly stolen by the many starving people living in the streets._

"_What are you doing stupid brat!"exclaimed the owner as he lifted him by the hair._

"_I'm... I'm sorry, it wasn't my..." Asmita tried to apologize but then he received a strong hit on the stomach that knocked the air out of him._

"_LOOK AT WHAT YOU HAVE DONE, THEY HAVE STOLEN EVERYTHING I HAD AND IT'S YOUR FAULT!"screamed the man as he kicked and punched the small frame of Asmita._

"_Please make it stop" thought Asmita as he received the hits of the furious man. "Please make it stop… please" and without realizing Asmita came into contact with his cosmo… light bathed the alley and everybody in a ten meter radius was thrown away from the child with enormous force, many died from the impact of their bodies against the walls and the street._

"ASMITA!" Aldebaran's scream pulled Asmita from his memories. He quickly dried his tears.

"That is right… afterwards nobody dared bother me… and I thought that if I learned to control that power nobody would ever bother me, but…" he thought about Aldebaran and the distrustful eyes of his comrades, the golden saints.

"Truly, in this world there is no place for me…" he still did not understand what happened with Sasha, but decided he would analyze it another time. Asmita took a deep breath and finally managing to calm down he started to meditate, then his voice carried over the entire temple…

"I would appreciate it if you would abandon the temple of Virgo in this moment, unfortunately, I am in no condition to receive you properly."

_**What's that supposed to mean? **_Asked Docko telepathically.

_**How would I know? **_Answered Shion. Both looked at Sysiphus, who just shrugged.

"Asmita!"

"Not know Mr. Aldebaran, I promise you I will give you an explanation, but not at this moment" his voice faded out, leaving the four saints even more confused than before; though they left the temple as soon as they realized that they would achieve nothing by staying there.

Meanwhile Sasha had stopped crying and had roughly explained to Sage what had happened, keeping to herself what she had found out about Asmita when she penetrated his mind, as well as Asmita's threat… both Sage and Sasha were in one of the rooms of the main temple; Sage weighing what had happened and Sasha drinking a nerve-calming tea. Then Sage got up, Sasha looked at him with questioning eyes.

"I shall call Asmita to the main temple" answered Sage to the unvoiced question.

"What? Why?" asked the surprised goddess.

"He must account for his actions…"

"But…" Sage raised his hand to silence her.

"Even though you led to a reaction with your behaviour, Asmita is a gold saint and he cannot afford to have such violent reactions." Explained the pope, but as he went to the door, it closed violently and Sage felt a threatening cosmos rise behind him. He slowly turned around and noticed the princess was glaring at him with eyes that looked like cold, harsh steel.

"Sage, I forbid you to get into this" she said with authority emanating from her small frame. Sage was surprised.

"Pardon me?" he asked astonished, surely he must have heard wrong. Athena sighed softly.

"Sage, I love you, you are like the father that I have never had and your experience when leading the sanctuary is invaluable… but this is business is mine and mine alone." She answered with a potent and authoritarian voice. Sage could not believe his ears.

"But princess…"

"I, Palas Athena Parthenos, order you to stay in the sidelines." She interrupted with a glare and, for the first time in his life, Sage feared the fury of his own goddess. After thinking for a couple seconds he dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

"As you command, you highness. With your permission, I shall retire" Athena nodded slightly and Sage left the room quickly, a bit disturbed by how close to incur the fury of his goddess he had been.

It was two weeks before Sasha got enough courage to descend to Virgo, when she arrived; the temple was empty, so she reached the garden and after knocking lightly on the door, she opened it without effort, calmly entering the garden of the Twin Salas. She got closer to Asmita, who was calmly meditating in the middle of the garden. He wasn't wearing the gold cloth of Virgo at the moment.

"Are you sure it is sensible to come to Virgo, Athena?" he asked while frowning. Athena smiled gently and took a seat in front of him, smoothing her pants a bit.

"I don't know if it is sensible, but it is necessary… I have come to apologize." Asmita startled and immediately after recovered his apparent impassivity.

"It is not necessary Athena, it is I who must apologize, what is more I plan to renounce the sacred cloth of Virgo and my title as one of your saints"

"WHAT?"

"I am not worthy of wearing it after my reprehensible behaviour towards your highness. As soon as I present my resignation I will leave the Sanct..." he was interrupted by the Goddesses' arms surrounding his neck and was surprised when he heard her sobs.

"A... Athena..."

"I don't want you to leave! It is my fault, I was the cause of all this, it is not fair that you suffer the consequences for it."

"Stop saying foolish things princess... you are a goddess and you should not tolerate behaviour such as mine towards you" he answered while trying not to show how uncomfortable he was in her hug.

"No Asmita! YOU stop saying foolish things! If you leave I will be so sad..."

"Athena... do not be silly, I am but a human. You are a goddess and must not be sad because of me"

"Well, I am silly!" she exclaimed while looking towards his neutral face.

"I am silly, childish, and capricious and I cry for anything! but I also know what is to laugh, to love and be happy. And I love you very much Asmita... you've been so nice to me..." Asmita shook his head softly.

"No princess; I only do what a saint must do" this time it was Sasha who shook her head.

"Sage, Sisyphus and the others do not treat me the way you do, they treat me either as the all-powerful Athena or as little Sasha… you, on the other hand, treat me as if I am you equal."

"That exactly it, Athena, I am unworthy of watching over the sixth temple because I cannot see you as a great goddess or as a small child… you are just…" Asmita quieted, unsure of continuing. Athena smiled among her tears.

"Say it, it won't go beyond this garden"

"A foolish and childish goddess, who does not do as she is told… but that I like… a little…" Asmita blushed as he admitted the last part. Sasha let him go and dried her tears.

"I… I like being human, because besides experiencing the pain and sadness I can also laugh and be happy and have friends! Asmita you are my friend and I don't want you to leave!"

"I am honored princess." He answered bowing slightly. Athena smiled and contemplated the garden for a few instants.

"The only thing I want is for you to allow me to compensate you… because I know I harmed you, even though that was not my intention."

"Athena, that is not necessary…"

"Perhaps not, but I want to do it and… ah… you have won my trust Virgo Saint" Asmita raised an eyebrow, remembering the disastrous ending of their first lesson; he probed Athena's cosmos with his own and found her very calm. Athena smiled.

"I will let you see my soul" she added and Asmita startled.

"See your soul?" he asked unsure and bit his lower lip, he felt tempted, perhaps he could finally understand her… but on the other hand he was but a lowly human… he could not just bare the soul of a god, it was not correct.

"Yes, as I have done with you. I know that I invaded your privacy and I shouldn't have done it, therefore I want you to do the same, so that we can settle the debt."

"But Athena…"

"But nothing! Don't make me order it Asmita!" Athena smiled

"I trust in you and I believe you need to know more about me, so that you can trust in me"

Immediately Athena started meditating, Asmita swallowed a bit and followed her... soon, he found her entity and approached her, he proved gently with his conscience and as he did not find resistance, he entered...

After several hours both took a deep breath as they returned to their respective bodies. Sasha looked at Asmita with curiosity but, even though she was dying of curiosity, didn't ask anything and let him collect his thoughts before talking with her.

"I still think you are a foolish goddess... adorable, but foolish" said Asmita and Sasha started laughing. In the end Asmita couldn't help following her and soon they were both laughing heartily, of nothing and of everything, simply happy to be there...

"Oh, I don't even know why we were laughing" said Asmita once he recovered his breath. Sasha giggled.

"One doesn't need reasons to laugh, I remember to have told you once, that we do not need to understand this feeling, but we must do what the heart tells us to do" Asmita tilted his head, pondering the words of the little goddess and nodded slightly.

"Perhaps you are right, there are things that do not need to be rationalized."


	4. Chapter 4: Love

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

Also, there will be a small spoiler from another fic of mine called Eliel, which hasn't been translated yet, but I'll translate that one after this one.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes under ANY CIRCUMSTANCE.

**Chapter 4: Love**

Years had passed since Athena-Sasha and Asmita shared their first laugh together, and several more followed it over the years. But not everything can be happiness and soon Athena's seal lost power and Hades' specters started to awaken around the world…

It was couple hours after Sasha was attacked by the Worm Specter and saved by Shion of Aries. She got a good scolding by Sage about her tendency to escape the protection of the 12 temples. In the end, she was strictly forbidden to leave the main temple, not even to Piscis and that's how Athena ended up confined.

"_I would have never thought that Tenma was training to become one of my saints… the world is such a small place after all." _Thought Athena while seated in her balcony, with her eyes lost on the blue sky.

"Princess… princess…" Athena turned to see who was calling her. One of her handmaidens, a new girl called Rafaella, looked at her while blushing to the ears. Athena smiled lightly at her.

"A very handsome saint wishes for an audience with you" said Rafaella while turning even more red and Athena couldn't help the giggle that escaped her.

"Does this handsome saint have a name?" she asked, amused, and noted how Rafaella's blush turned to embarrassment.

"Oh… I… I did not ask… but he had a Gold Cloth" she added quickly, trying to cover her mistake. Athena smiled openly.

"Well, let him in and bring tea, please" Rafaella went out almost running while Athena tried to contain the laugh that threatened to escape her. With a happy sigh she returned her sight to the sky and stayed still until she felt a familiar cosmos approach her.

"Princess" she heard the masculine voice and smiled to herself when she heard Rafaella's sigh. Sasha rose and run to the saint, who was already waiting with open arms.

"Asmita! Welcome back! I have missed you so much!" exclaimed Sasha, happiness obvious in her voice. It was almost a month since he had left for a mission and she had truly missed him.

"Me too princess, me too" he replied with his usual calm tone. Then Sasha let him go and stood back a bit. She looked at Rafaella, who had the eyes like saucers, since this was the first time she saw the princess being so familiar with one of her saints.

"What are you waiting for, child? Go bring the tea" she ordered once more with a smile.

"Ah! Yes, right away your highness!" after Rafaella left, Sasha took Asmita's hand and pulled him towards the balcony.

"Come, there is wind today." She said as an explanation while she dragged him. A small smile appeared in the face of the Virgo Saint, the goddess had not changed a bit.

They got seated and enjoyed a comfortable silence while they waited for the tea. Sasha smiled, first Tenma and then Asmita, this was definitely a good day. Soon the tea arrived and after a couple sips Sasha decided to begin the conversation.

"You know? Today is a very good day." She commented with a big smile. Asmita smiled as well when he noticed the joyful tone of voice.

"You were forbidden to leave the main temple and still call it a good day?" he asked with curiosity.

"Yes, because you have come back and because I have reunited with Tenma, apparently he's training to become the Pegasus Saint" she answered happily, without noticing how Asmita's smile fell slightly.

"Yes?" he asked feigning innocence. He had already known of Docko's apprentice, in fact all the Gold Saints knew that he and the princess were childhood friends and because of that they had not mentioned them in each other's presence... though Asmita had other reasons.

"Yes, and he hasn't changed in anything. He's a bit taller I think, but he's still the same stubborn but charming Tenma I knew." She answered as her sight got lost on the horizon once more. Silence reigned once more, until a loud noise was heard and both jumped and turned to the noise.

"Rafaella?" asked the goddess when she noticed her handmaiden was in the floor surrounded by several metal and wood utensils.

"Ah... my apologies your highness... I will leave now" she said as she took back everything that had fallen and practically running away, but not before giving Asmita an appreciative look, which he didn't notice of course. But Sasha did notice, and started to laugh quietly.

"You should get a less clumsy servant" commented Asmita and Sasha started to laugh out loud. Asmita raised both eyebrows and waited patiently until Sasha stopped laughing.

"Something I should know?" he asked as Sasha calmed down.

"I... I'm sorry is just that..." Sasha cleared her throat.

"Sorry, it's just that Rafaella is not usually like that..." then a loud laugh escaped her.

"Isn't she?" he asked

"No, it's just that you make her nervous" Asmita looked confused.

"How can I make her nervous when she does not even know me?" he asked puzzled. Sasha smiled.

"Apparently she thinks you are "a very handsome saint"" Asmita immediately turned red, made even more obvious with his light skin and Sasha started laughing again. The Virgo Saint fidgeted uncomfortably but then counterattacked.

"And your highness thinks otherwise?" he asked with half a smile, immediately Sasha's laugh became coughing.

"Ah... I... I mean... well..." Sasha babbled incoherently while she turned bright red. Asmita smiled sadly and then took mercy on her.

"I am joking, princess" Athena sighed with relief because she didn't have to answer and because he was blind and could not see just how red she had turned...

Later as Asmita was going down through Libra he heard Shion's voice

"I'm telling you nothing is wrong! Stop annoying me Docko!" exclaimed a very flustered Shion.

"And I'm telling you that I don't believe it. Your cosmos is different! Blessed Athena, why are you so stubborn!" insisted the master of the seventh temple.

"It is not! It's just that since we haven't seen each other in a while you've forgotten how it feels!" argued Shion.

"That's not true and you know it Shion. _Everybody_ noticed that you are different! Asmita, tell him you noticed as well!" demanded Docko as he noticed the presence of the Virgo Saint. Asmita turned towards Shion.

"I do not think _different_ is the word..."

"Ha! See Docko? I told you that..." Asmita then interrupted Shion's declaration.

"It is more as if there is something within you that is not you..." Shion turned towards Asmita and stared at him for a few seconds.

"What... what do you mean?" he asked nervously. Asmita tilted his head, thoughtfully.

"I mean that part of your soul does not seem to match with the rest." Answered Asmita.

"As a result your cosmos feels divided." He concluded.

Shion pressed his lips together until they were nothing but a thin line.

"I willll accompany you to Virgo."

"But... Shion!"

"Later Docko. Let us go Asmita" Asmita was rather puzzled but nevertheless followed Shion outside.

They walked slowly and once they were far enough Shion spoke.

"Is it so obvious?" Asmita nodded slightly.

"I noticed that there was something within you that did not fit with the rest the day I met you. But the difference was very subtle among both pieces so I was the only one who noticed, it did not seem to be dangerous so I thought nothing of it... but now both pieces are... separated or something like that and the difference is so big that the others have noticed." Shion nodded, worried.

"It is not my soul... I mean that piece... I... gave a piece of my soul so that I could be allowed to take care of this one... it is something important... to me." Asmita frowned at Shion's explanation.

"You share a soul with someone? Is it even possible?" he asked amazed. Shion looked towards the sky for a moment.

"Only my people can do it, it is something very dangerous, so most of us avoid it and die without having ever done it..." his voice quieted down as he let his thoughts carry him away.

"You say it is dangerous, that is because..." Asmita thought about it for a few seconds.

"The owner of the other soul... can control you, can't he?"

"Something like that... and is a she" added Shion as he blushed brightly.

"But if it is so dangerous, then why did you do it?... I mean, if you don't mind answering." Asked Asmita while they entered the Virgo temple. Shion laughed softly.

"One does anything for love..." Asmita startled.

"For love..." he repeated as he thought about Shion's answer, who continued speaking.

"It is not only dangerous, it is also something very intimate, since you can have no secrets when you share a soul, it demands complete trust in the each other, usually it is done for love... it does not always end well, but as I said before one does anything for love..."

"And yet you are divided." Noted Asmita and Shion sighed.

"She is mad at me... so she tries to separate from me, but it is not possible to fully separate so she simply moves away."

"Don't you regret it? I mean, wouldn't it have been better if you hadn't done it?" Asmita asked as his mind worked as fast as possible.

"It was for the best... we both needed it and we would be much worse if we had not done it" Asmita opened his mouth, stopped and gathered his courage to ask the question that was bothering him.

"But how do you know it is for the best?" Shion looked at him puzzled and then noticed what was Asmita truly talking about.

"You can't know... it is all about taking risks... You should tell her, the worse that can happen is that she doesn't feel the same." Asmita smiled sadly and shook his head.

"It is not so easy"

"It never is" answered Shion.

"But if I knew that it is for the best to not tell her..." Asmita let the possibility hanging in the air and it was Shion's turn to smile sadly.

"Not knowing is worse than knowing, especially considering how short are our lives" Asmita still looked unconvinced and Shion sighed.

"Do what you feel is best Asmita, I just hope you don't end up regretting it... good bye" Shion turned and walked towards Leo, but stopped when he heard Asmita's voice.

"Shion..."

"Don't worry, this conversation was about the benefits of mint tea... a piece of advice, keep an eye on Pegasus if you don't want him to take her from you." He added with a laugh and quickly left before Asmita noticed what he had said. Said saint blushed when he noticed Shion had discovered the identity of his beloved.

"_Is it so obvious?"_ he asked himself

"_I must be more careful, even if Shion does not mind, not everybody would react so calmly if they knew"_ Asmita went to the Salas garden, but as soon as he entered a memory filled his mind...

"_One doesn't need reasons to laugh, I remember to have told you once, that we do not need to understand this feeling, but we must do what the heart tells us to do" Asmita tilted his head, pondering the words of the little goddess and nodded slightly._

"_Perhaps you are right; there are things that do not need to be rationalized."_

Asmita smiled, he remembered that day as if it had been yesterday... and remembered that it was that day when he started to love his young goddess...

"_I would not need to rationalize it if the consequences were not so grave... I am sorry, little princess... but even if my heart tells me that you must know what I hide... I cannot do it. Because I know the knowledge of being unable to reciprocate will only bring you more suffering and I prefer to spare you... my foolish goddess Athena..."_


	5. Chapter 5: My place in the world

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes.

**Chapter 5: My place in the world**

Athena sighed sadly, it was almost half a year since the last time she had seen Asmita, and it had not been a happy encounter...

_Athena watched the sunset from the main temple's terrace, her eyes full of unfallen tears... she felt so betrayed._

"_I just want you to answer me a question Asmita... why?"_

"_Because it is not correct that the goddess Athena involves herself so much with one of her saints."_

"_Because it is not correct... what kind of reason is that?" demanded the young goddess with a broken voice._

"_That is my reason, nothing more, nothing less."_

"_You're lying, you have never cared about that kind of things." Asmita remained silent as tears fell from Sasha's eyes._

"_I repeat it... why? And this time give me the true reason Virgo Saint" Asmita instead turned and walked away._

"_Asmita! Come back here! You have not answered me!" Asmita stopped walking and answered without turning._

"_Because you behave like a child and I am not interested in wasting any more of my time with you... I believe I have said it before, I consider you a foolish goddess." Then he continued walking, ignoring the choked sobs of the young woman._

It was almost half a year since then and once Athena had been able to analyze the situation with a cold head she realized Asmita had lied once more, she did not know the reason of the sudden distance between them and longed to know it, yet Asmita had avoided her these past months. But no more, tonight she would go and get an answer even if she had to kick him out of bed to get it...

In the end she did find him deeply asleep, but not in the bed but sitting against one of the twin trees. Athena sat in front of him and stared intensely. Anyone who saw him would think he was meditating, but she noticed the difference. Instead of being perfectly straight he was slumped over and his hair was falling over his face. Almost unconsciously, Sasha reached over and pushed the delicate gold threads away, she did not count with the sharp reflexes that came with the harsh training that Asmita had gone through, who, even though he was half sleep still, took Sasha's wrist roughly and pinned her to the ground... then he realized just who he had pinned to the ground and opened his eyes wide...

"Princess Athena!" he exclaimed bewildered and let her go immediately. She sat up and rubbed her wrist in pain. She would have to make do to hide the bruise that would appear, but that wasn't important now...

"Princess Athena, what are you doing here? This late at night?" asked the Virgo saint puzzled. Sasha stared at him, noting the shine of the moon in his clouded blue eyes and sighed.

"Tell me the truth Asmita, why are you pushing me away... why are you avoiding me? Are we not friends?" Asmita closed his eyes and frowned.

"No" he answered as he took a deep breath to calm down. This time it was Athena who frowned.

"Liar. Asmita? Please tell me, I'm sure that whatever the reason, there is a solution, please Asmita." She asked while tears started to fall from her eyes. Asmita felt his heart twist and extended his hand, capturing Athena's tears in his fingers, he then took them softly to his lips. Sasha looked at him expectantly.

"Most people think that tears are salty, but truly they could not be more bitter." Asmita commented with a sad tone in his voice.

"True." Answered Sasha while drying her tears and looking at him full of doubts.

"I have already told you that it is not correct for Athena to favour one of her saints..."

"But..." Asmita raised his hand and Sasha quieted down.

"It is not correct for Athena to favour me, or Pegasus Tenma or any other, because we are humans, because we are saints and because it is our destiny to die for our beliefs, it is not correct for Athena to open herself to the pain of losing a saint that she favours above all others." Explained Asmita in school-teacher tone and Sasha blew her bangs in frustration.

"It is too late for that Asmita... do you believe that you avoiding me doesn't cause me a horrible pain?"

"I realize that, it was my mistake to allow our relationship to go beyond saint and goddess, and I am terribly sorry. Now I shall behave as a proper saint and try to stop you from feeling a bigger pain, your highness." Athena raised and looked at him coldly.

"You say that I am a foolish goddess for feeling pain... but I think _you_ are a foolish man for trying to avoid it, knowing that it is part of being human, feeling pain and happiness, it is proof that we are alive." She stormed away, too angry to do anything else.

It was months later that Athena ordered Shion of Aries and Docko of Libra, together with several silver and bronze saints that searched for Hades vessel... Tenma of Pegasus was murdered by Aron, the current incarnation of the Underworld God. Tenma's death saddens the goddess and everyone in the Sanctuary notices her pain... including Asmita of Virgo.

"_The killer of Gods is dead... I suppose the Earth will be better without him... and yet... she is crying." _These were Asmita's thoughts as he reached the goddess' chambers.

Athena herself was standing in front of the statue that represented her, using her cosmos to generate the barrier that prevented the spectres' revival, her body and her heart were so tired of so much pain and death.

"_But I am the goddess protector of Earth, I must continue. Even when I wish to renounce and hide from the world in a place where nobody can find me, I must continue..."_

"Princess Athena" the voice pulled her from her thoughts and she looks towards the saint that was kneeling in front of her, her friend Asmita. Athena smiles sweetly as she notices his worry, even when he had tried to separate himself from her to protect her, she had not forgotten her dearest friend.

"Asmita, I wish to ask you something." Asmita bowed even more, for it was the goddess who was speaking.

"Go to the Mekkai Asmita... and search for Tenma of Pegasus" Asmita pursed his lips tightly.

"No"

"No?" asked Sasha with slight surprise at his refusal to follow orders.

"I refuse. I am very sorry but I cannot agree that you lower yourself to expect that a simple bronze saint..."

"A bronze saint that is my friend." Sasha reminded him brusquely. Asmita frowned.

"You are allowing your emotions to cloud your good judgement." He snapped with contained anger. Athena sighed, she knew he was partly right, but how could it be any different?

"I am human..." she began to remind him but was interrupted by his outburst.

"No! You are a goddess... you shouldn't... you shouldn't..." he bowed his head, trying to contain himself.

"Go to the Mekkai, Asmita. I promise you that even some of your doubts will be answered if you can see what I see..."

When Asmita returned from the Mekkai, he had indeed been able to see a little of what his goddess was talking about.

"_The feelings that cloud her judgement, Tenma's and mine... through them we become stronger... it is those feelings that give us reasons to live, even when they give us pain and suffering..."_

Asmita made his way once more towards his goddess, once in her presence he fell to one knee and bowed his head.

"Are your doubts cleared, Asmita?" asked Athena with a small smile. Asmita nodded.

"Yes... Athena, please forgive me, I have been rude towards you, many times in the past..."

"Don't worry. I know that, since you have been blind since birth, you can lose yourself within all the things that ordinary people cannot feel." Asmita bowed again, humbled once he recognize his error.

"Without my sight, my other senses can feel how the world is overwhelmed by confusion and pain, I could not comprehend what was the point of living in a world so full of suffering, and yet I was blind to the other side of the coin, I did not notice... no, I did not want to notice that in contrast to the dark there was also light."

"You met Tenma, didn't you? Being the Underworld, you could use your sight, and from what you saw, what do you think about him?" Asmita couldn't help a small laugh.

"I thought he was too emotional and stupid... simply put, a young human." Sasha smiled at the description and knew that Asmita had finally understood her way of seeing things.

Then she lost her balance for a moment, and couldn't help the moan of pain that scaped her, she was exhausted from fuelling the barrier.

"_Athena! I knew that keeping the barrier up was hurting her and yet she continues, and I... I cannot do anything to help her, how impotent I feel... unless..."_

"Athena, I wish to ask you something... we have passed... for many things together, good and bad... I want to ask you what do you think about me? Why do you insist in being... my friend?" Sasha smiled and slowly made her way down the stairs that separated her from him. She sat on the last step and patted the space beside her, indicating that she wished for the Saint of Virgo to seat with her. Asmita doubted for a second but got closer and sat next to her.

"We have passed for many things together Asmita, good and bad, but you have seen beyond Athena and beyond Sasha, you're fussy, a bit obsessive and sometimes too flematic... but I love you the way you are, because you are my friend" she took his hand then, intertwining their fingers together and thought about the first time she had done that, so long ago.

"Besides, from the first time I saw you, I knew we were in some ways similar, you and I both knew our own pain, you and I both knew the pain of the others and yet we were so different in other ways, because while I choose to take others pain as my own, you choose to isolate yourself from it..." Athena leaned against Asmita, she was so tired.

"And regarding what I think of you... I think you are Asmita of Virgo, nothing more, nothing less, a man who laughs and cries, even when the rest doesn't know... and my friend, the man who knows my heart better than anyone else."

"And yet I have doubt you, I could not comprehend... the way you see the world." Said Asmita in a whisper. Sasha smiled.

"Yes... but you don't need to understand girls, you just need to love them." Answered Athena softly... and Asmita smiled...

"Finally returned to your temple Docko" said Asmita as he walked through the seventh temple. Docko turned, surprised to see him.

"Asmita! You're out of your temple, what were you..."

"Nothing" interrupted Asmita with a smile.

"I just went to see Athena, nothing to worry about" Docko looked at him with some distrust; the Virgo saint was quite mysterious. Then Asmita stopped and turned slightly.

"Docko... your apprentice, the one that is like a little brother to you, he is quite impulsive, but a good boy."

"H... How do you know Tenma? Where are you going Asmita? Who in the world are you?" Asmita smiled softly.

"I am Asmita of Virgo, nothing more, nothing less. _I am Athena's friend and the man who loves her the most_" added Asmita to himself.

"and I am going where all Saints eventually go. Under normal circumstances, it's the place to die."

Asmita held the rosary made with the fruit of the Mokurenji.

"For a long time I have meditated in complete darkness, accumulating my cosmos. Finally, the day that makes everything worth it has come" he said as he tightened his grip on the rosary.

"_Athena, forgive me, for I will make you suffer even more, but I cannot permit your continuing sacrifice to keep that barrier, not when I can make something about it..."_ Then a cool wind passed through the window.

_Sasha took Asmita's hand and pulled him towards the balcony._

"_Come, there is wind today." She said as an explanation while she dragged him. A small smile appeared in the face of the Virgo Saint, the goddess had not changed a bit._

Asmita smiled again, remembering that moment that seemed so long ago.

"Ah, a good wind... today is a wonderful day..." he commented as he sat on the floor. Soon he began accumulating his cosmos.

"_Athena, forgive me. I, Asmita, who does not know the light, I had no intention of changing my ideology even when my life was filled with doubt and suffering... however I can now see the world as you see it, princess..." _Tenma ran up the tower and Asmita smiled as he watched the horizon.

"Is that you, Tenma? I can now see that the world is beautiful! Look, there's light over there. There's a village over there right? People live with their problems and sufferings, yet they can still spare a moment to smile…" He turned then, and saw Tenma for the first time, smiling at his dirty but youthful face.

"Ah... your face is even younger than I had imagined..." he returned his sight towards the scenery in front of him.

"In that moment when we saw each other in the underworld... and even now, it is you Tenma, you are who reflects the young eyes of the goddess... it is you who reflects Athena's wish... Tenma..." Asmita's body started to disappear.

"I entrust you her protection"

Thousands of kilometres away, Athena and the inhabitants of the twelve temples felt Asmita's cosmos vanish in an explosion...

"Asmita..." Sasha felt to her knees and cried inconsolably.

"Athena... Athena..." Athena raised her eyes and found Asmita, barely a trace of cosmos, but Asmita still.

"Athena, do not cry. The war has not ended and you must be strong for the others..." Athena quickly dried her tears.

"Why, Asmita? Why didn't you tell me what you were going to do?" Asmita smiled and looked towards the sky with nostalgia, Virgo shined brightly overhead.

"The stars are shining brightly tonight..." he answered mysteriously and then turned to see her. Sasha felt that she was drowning in his profound blue eyes.

"The duty of Saint of Athena is to die for his goddess... I just did what I came to do in this world..."

"But... but you are leaving, and you are so young, barely older than me, you have lived nothing..." Asmita smiled

"All human life is nothing more than a blink, a mere moment, in that moment people are born, laugh, cry, fight, are hurt, feel happiness, sadness, hate someone, love someone. Everything in a single moment. Then, they are embraced by that eternal dream called death... So have I lived everything I should have lived, I was born, laughed, cried, fought, was hurt, I felt happiness, sadness, I hated someone... and I loved someone... and now my princess, I must go to sleep..." Sasha started to cry softly once more. But she lifted her face, tear-stained and smiled to her saint.

"You have forgotten something... you also... have been loved by someone." She replied while looking at him expectantly. Asmita looked surprised but then smiled and got closer. Reached towards her and dried her tears, then he took his fingers to his lips and looked at her with renewed intensity.

"Don't cry Glaucopis, your tears are bitter... I have found my place in the world, by your side... so we will see each other again, in another time and another place..."

"With another name and another appearance" she added.

"Yes, but you will be you and I will be I... and we will have a new life to live... Goodbye my dearest Athena, my beloved Athena..." Finally what was left of his cosmos started to vanish and Athena smiled sadly.

"It is a promise, Virgo Saint"

"It is a promise, Princess Athena" he answered as he floated towards the stars.

Glaucopis: Silver/gray eyes. One of the many titles given to Athena.


	6. Epilogue: Deja Vu

**Spoiler Warning:** fic based on Lost Canvas, read under your own risk. Some details may differ from the actual work though since I really didn't like the end and it was a while since I read it.

This is a translation from a fanfic I wrote in Spanish called "Mi querido amigo", if you find some awkward sentences or grammar/orthographic mistakes please let me know, since English is not my first language and I don't have a beta.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Saint Seiya then the Gold Saints wouldn't have died and the Bronze Saints would NOT be the heroes.

**Epilogue: Deja vu**

Shaka walked slowly down the hallways of the main temple, in his hand he held the smaller hand of a child, barely 6 years old, who held firmly onto him. Finally they stopped in front of the doors of the Pope's hall, Shaka took the child's shoulders and smiled slightly, his eyes observing similar blue but opaque and distant.

"Lucien, stay and wait for me here, I must speak to the pope before introducing you to him, do not move from here, I cannot stress this enough." Asked Shaka with a forced and heavily accented French and Lucien nodded.

"Don't worry Mr. Shaka, where could I possibly go?" answered the child indifferently. Shaka's response was sighing.

"You would be surprised" he added and soon turned and entered the patriarchal chamber.

Lucien stood in the middle of the hallway, completely still. Had he been in his home he would have found something to do, but since he was in an unknown place he preferred to not take risks and stayed firmly where he had been left... he heard footsteps getting closer and turned slightly towards them. It was not Mr. Shaka since they came from another direction and they were much softer, Lucien concluded that they belonged to someone that weighted little, a child most likely. Then he noticed that the steps were getting closer at great speed, but he didn't know where he could move to get out of the way so he stayed where he was.

Lucien felt how the hit left him without air and fell to the floor spectacularly together with whatever had hit him.

"Ow, ow, ow, everything hurts" murmured the child that had crashed against him in Greek. Lucien identified her as a girl, though he didn´t understand a thing she said. "Hey! Why didn´t you move out of the way?" she snapped and Lucien made a puzzled face. She stared at him and blew her bangs when she noticed he didn't look Greek at all.

"English?" she asked with a heavy accent. Lucien frowned, he understood a couple words of English, but couldn't speak it. The girl tried again "Français?"

"Oui" answered Lucien and the girl made a pout while she got ready to scold him.

"Why didn't you move out of the way when you saw me running, you dummy!" she fired in quick French. Lucien clenched his little fists, he really wanted to hit her, but he had to learn to mind his temper, Mr. Shaka had told him so.

"Because I didn't _see_ you running, stupid girl!" he snapped back. She startled and looked at him angrily.

"Do not call me that! I am the goddess Athena!" she almost screamed in response and this time Lucien startled.

"_Great, I'm barely here and I'm already in trouble"_ he thought and then bowed slightly.

"Sorry, I didn't know" then he frowned. "Wait, if you are the goddess Athena then why were you running?"

"That is not of your..." she began but immediately shut up when she heard someone calling her. "Come, run!" she exclaimed as she took his hand and started running, dragging poor Lucien behind her.

In the end they got out to one of the many balconies.

"Ah, there's wind today" said little Athena and Lucien had a strange sense of déjà vu. As if he had heard her said that before, but it couldn't be, he had just met her. Meanwhile little Athena stared at him for several moments. She noticed that Lucien was older than her, if he had come to train then he had to be at least 6 and she was just 4, so unfair.

"Hey, why aren't you looking at me? Am I so ugly?" she asked with a frown. Lucien turned in her general direction and smiled sadly.

"How would I know? Since I can't see you" Athena blinked several times.

"Are you..."

"Blind? Yes"

Silence...

"I'm sorry" she muttered, looking to the floor. Lucien shrugged.

"It's not your fault."

Silence...

"So... what's your name?" asked Athena while looking at him with her large gray eyes.

"Lucien" he answered and she smiled in response.

"Nice to meet you Lucien, I am Athena Ageleia"

"A pleasure, princess." Athena stared at him a long while, Lucien's blond hair reflected the sun and even though his blue eyes could not see, that didn't diminish their beauty.

"You're cute" she said suddenly, making Lucien turn a bright shade of red, which make her giggle.

"Thanks... I guess"

"Then, how is it?" she asked.

"How is what?" he replied distractedly.

"Being like you"

"Blind?"

"Yep" Lucien sighed and thought about the answer for a minute.

"Since I can't see, my other senses are sharper... and I can _see _things that others cannot..."

"Like?" asked Athena as she moved her brown hair out of the way. She was hanging from his words, curiosity evident in her face.

"In this world, there are a lot of people who suffer, and I can see that suffering better than most..."

"Then that means… that you too suffer terribly" she said and both were shocked by another sense of déjà bu. They both thought that they had heard/said that phrase before...

"Lucien!" called Shaka and both turned to see him. "Ah, good morning little princess, how are you today?" asked the Gold Saint with a smile. Athena ran to him and hugged him.

"Hi Shaka! I am fine, how are you?"

"I couldn't be better, now that I have seen you." He answered tenderly. Then he looked towards the boy. "Come, Lucien. His Excellency wishes to meet you."

Lucien got closer and allowed Shaka to take his hand and guide him towards the hall.

"Bye Lucien! I hope you visit me soon!" said Athena with a wave and Lucien grinned in response.

"_We will see each other again little Athena, I promise"_

Finis

AN: Thank you for reading my fic and sticking with me to the end, I hope you liked it. Purestrongpoem just pointed out that I left some explanations out of the fic, so let me correct it.

When I wrote this fic (a couple of years back) I was fitting this into my Saint Seiya AU (which is mostly inside my head, except for a couple of fics besides this one). In this AU, Athena-Saori sacrificed herself shortly after the Tenkai Hen Overture, and used her sacrifice to bring her Gold Saints back to life. But, because she was not meant to die, she had to reincarnate almost immediately as a new Athena. Therefore, a new generation of Saints was needed to protect her. Lucien, who is Shaka's apprentice, is part of this new generation.

Another thing, at first I was thinking that Lucien was Asmita's reincarnation. But I've changed my mind and decided that both Shaka and Lucien are Asmita's reincarnations. The idea is a bit blurry still, so don't expect too many details yet ;)

Though you can probably expect a ShakaxSaori fic in the future.


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